After posting about the attitude towards Soul Asylum from certain quarters I got to thinking about snobbery in music. I would consider myself first and foremost a music fan. The genres that people claim to be into are handy descriptive terms, but little more than that to me.
I can understand young men and women nailing their flags to a genre, but with maturity I would expect that their tastes would broaden and by the time they were in their early thirties they would be enjoying music from a far wider palette.
Personally I find no shame in stating loud and proud that I like a song. To do so doesn’t equate to me loving everything that the artist or band releases, but I may like a certain song and I don’t have a problem saying so.
So far the Pussycat Dolls have released a lot of crap in my opinion, but if their next single was to my taste I wouldn’t deny it just because they’re manufactured girl band toss. A good tune is a good tune regardless of who it is releasing it.
So based on my attitude to music I thought I would up a couple of songs for you to listen to without saying who it is. The first has more than a hint of the Jam in it’s chorus with the rest being a rip off of The Libertines, while the second is treading the same path as say the Arctic Monkeys who were following on from the Fall and John Cooper Clarke in my opinion. I like both songs and I think that without the name of the band being known some people will be honest enough to say that they do to.
Give them a go and listen with fresh ears and tell me what you think.
Link in comments.
http://rapidshare.com/files/379682929/preconcieved_ideas.rar
ReplyDeleteLove your post, I was music snob as a young teenager. for years I told everyone I only liked Punk when secretly I was still a rock 'n' roll and glam fan as well. Now I like seomthing from just about every genre, and I couldn't care less what others think. Music is persinal and you should just enjoy what you want and I always recommend trying new stuff.
ReplyDeleteI moved from Glasgow to a smallish village when I was a kid and because I don't have any older siblings and due to it being quite a backward place I didn't have anyone to take the lead from when forming my tastes in music. So as I got older I was visiting Glasgow and buying anything that took my fancy.
ReplyDeleteBy the time I was thirteen I would be searching the second hand stores and it wouldn't be unusual for me to return home with Little Richard, T-Rex, Nina Simone, Black Sabbath and Frank Sinatra albums clutched in my hand.
In hindsight I think this has served me well as over the years I have seen loads of bands from all the different scenes and can now look back on a rather eclectic musical journey. It's all been to my benefit.
Could not agree with you more. Still remember the day I took all my Elvis records and hid them in the closet. The very same day I bought the Sex Pistols "never mind.." I was never to happy without the Elvis collection though and went in to get the albums some 10 years later. All my punk friends would argue that Elvis was a sellout. However Elvis was every bit as punk as the pistols and they were just as much of a sellout. Today they¨re side by side in my collection. Might go out and by a Robbie Williams album just for the hell of it
ReplyDeleteGoing to play your mystery tunes now and see what I know about music.
Cheers, Kasper
Robbie Williams is a good example. The man is a real entertainer and although I have never seen him live I would go if someone bought me a ticket. His first two solo albums are pretty good, but I don't know about the others. The swing one is alright I suppose.
ReplyDeleteThe last two Take That albums are full of mature pop classics. Nothing to do with what their earlier incarnation was all about. They're a band that could surprise people if they just gave them a listen. I doubt they would blow any punk rockers away, but they're not going to have you reaching for the sick bag either.
Music snobery is for morons I mean imagine if you applied the same logic to food and only ever ate Fish n' Chips life would become very dull. I think I agree with Billy Joel (not an artist I'm overly fond off) but when he sang "It's Still Rock 'n Roll To Me" I had to agree I don't like different terms just to say two kinds of music good or bad you like it or you don't simple. Cheers mate.
ReplyDeletePlayed the two tracks really good, reminded me of The Paddingtons, The Holloways and The Fratellis.
ReplyDeleteIt's Scouting for Girls mate.
ReplyDeleteWell the only thing I dislike about Scouting For Girls is on a recent documentary about the new goverment ruling concerning downloading they or rather the singer was pro the goverment rule.
ReplyDeleteThe songs are OK, but they aspire to be their influences so much they end up sounding contrived. I take your point though and wholeheartedly agree. You like what you like. The thing that usually throws my "snobby" mates is my penchant for Madonna but fuck 'em. "First rule is there's no rules".
ReplyDeleteMarky - You would think that young people in bands would be accepting that times have moved on and they have to move with them. It's mainly his generation that are guilty of turning music into a disposable commodity.
ReplyDeleteJohnny - The songs are from their second album. In my opinion the label has pressured them for a release and they have pilfered their influences and what they think would be popular to rush something out. So to my ears it sounds different to what they would have come up with if they had the luxury of time. This isn't a bad thing though as I would rather hear them rip these bands off than play something that was an extension of their first album.
I was a bandwagon hopping twat for a while at school...punk at 11,metal at 13,then punk/post punk!! really though,it ended up being 1976-1980 that stayed with me deep down-the metal thing was grammar-school-boy-hits-puberty..although I still like a bit of Bon Scott or Phil Lynott(Lizzy were never metal anyhow).
ReplyDeleteBut yeah-once I'd left school my tastes went off at tangents and its been the same ever since.Never close yr ears off to anything.Now,let's have a listen....